Mitchell Taylor, of Holtsville, charged in knifepoint robbery at Suffolk County Community College, police say
A Holstville man was charged with a knifepoint robbery at the Selden campus of Suffolk Community College, police said. Credit: Paul Mazza
A Holtsville man was scheduled for arraignment on Wednesday, charged with armed robbery after police said he robbed a woman at knifepoint on Tuesday evening inside a building on Suffolk County Community College's Ammerman campus in Selden.
Suffolk County police said, following an investigation, Sixth Squad detectives arrested Mitchell Taylor, 32, just after 1 a.m. on Wednesday, charging him with first-degree robbery.
Police said the victim, identified only as a 29-year-old woman, was not injured in the attack.
Both police and the college confirmed the victim was a school employee, although her role was not disclosed.
Police said Taylor had entered the Norman F. Lechtrecker Building about 6:40 p.m., approaching the victim and demanding her jacket and wallet. The woman complied with the demand — and police said Taylor then fled.
The woman then reported the robbery to police.
The Lechtrecker building houses several key administrative and academic departments, according to the campus website. It also serves as a central hub for Academic Affairs and related administrative offices, including the Vice President for Academic Affairs and the College Associate Dean for Accreditation/Institutional affairs at the school.
In a Wednesday statement to Newsday, the college said: "Upon learning of the incident, Suffolk County Community College's Public Safety team responded rapidly and worked with law enforcement to assist in their efforts to apprehend the suspect. The college immediately issued a college-wide public safety alert. The victim was a college employee, who was not harmed."
Held overnight at the Sixth Precinct, Taylor was scheduled for arraignment on Wednesday in First District Court in Central Islip.
John Valenti, a Newsday reporter since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press, Society of the Silurians and National Headliner Awards for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing. He is the author of “Swee'pea,” about New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. His debut crime novel, “For Nothing Is Hidden,” rooted in 1950s Long Island, was released in October 2025.
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